LENT 2025
Easter Lily Dedications
Easter Lily order forms are now live! Use the button below to place your lily dedication in honor or memory of your loved one(s). All orders must be submitted by Sunday, April 13, to be included in the Easter Dedication booklet. The lilies and the dedication booklet are available for pickup on Sunday, April 20.
Please note a price increase from $10 to $15 this year.
What is Lent?
Lent is a season of forty days, not counting Sundays, which begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on Holy Saturday. Lent comes from the Anglo-Saxon word lecten, which means "spring." the season is a preparation for celebrating Easter. Lent is a season of being "tested by the Spirit" so that our participation in the meaning of the Easter faith may be authentic and a true dying and rising with Christ to new life in God.
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Ash Wednesday emphasizes a dual encounter: we confront our own mortality and confess our sins before God within the community of faith. The form and content of the service focus on the dual themes of sin and death in the light of God's redeeming love in Jesus Christ. On this day, we recall our mortality and wait upon the Lord for a renewing Spirit.
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The use of ashes as a sign of mortality and repentance has a long history in Jewish and Christian worship, and the Imposition of Ashes can be a powerful nonverbal and experiential way of participating in the call to repentance and reconciliation. This practice is the historic focus of the Ash Wednesday observance and gave the day its name. It is traditional to save the palm branches from the previous Passion/Palm Sunday service and burn them ahead of time to produce the ashes for this service.
Lenten Devotional
Throughout Lent, we are invited to slow down, reflect, and prepare our hearts for the death and resurrection of Christ. As we journey through this holy season, we invite you to engage with God's story of redemption through our Lenten Envelopes. Inside, you'll find resources to help you experience, share, read, taste, hear, and participate in the story of God's love in new ways. The devotional booklet features stories filled with hope and redemption from the lives of our church family, giving us a glimpse into God's ever-present and ever-working grace. May this season draw us closer to one another and to the source of God's redemptive love in our world.
To access the Lenten Devotional, click on the image below.
If you would like to journey with us through Lent, reach out to
Betsy Spencer to get a Lentvelope!
Participate in God's story
Opportunities to Serve During Lent
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April 2 | Cloud Covered Streets | 8:30-11:30 am | 407 N. Mesquite Building
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April 4 | First Fridays | 5-9 pm | MinistrySafe certification required
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April 5 | Youth Spaghetti Supper | 5-9 pm | Great Hall
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April 12 | Family Egg Hunt & Picnic | 11 am-1 pm | West Parking Lot
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April 16 | Cloud Covered Streets | 8:30-11:30 am | 407 N. Mesquite Building
Items to Collect/Donate
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Toothbrushes
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Rain ponchos
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Sunscreen
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Bug spray
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Antibiotic ointment
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Hand sanitizer
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Small hand cream
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Umbrellas
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Tarps
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Bungee Cords
lenten studies
Lenten Sunday School with Pastor Madison
Sundays | March 9 | 10-10:45 am | Great Hall
As we head into the season of Lent, perhaps you want to learn more about this important time in our church calendar. Pastor Madison leads a series of special lessons for Sunday School during Lent titled "The Body and The Blood." These lessons explore how we, as United Methodists, narrate the story of the cross.
March 9: What Did the Cross Accomplish? - An Overview of Atonement Theologies and John Wesley's Interpretation
March 16: Did Jesus Really Have to Die? - Notions of Sin, Salvation, and the Necessity of Violence
March 23: What Does the Cross Symbolize? - Notions of Terror, Trauma, and the Glorification of Suffering
March 30: What is My Cross to Bear? - Notions of Guilt, Shame, Love, and Self-Sacrifice
April 6: Professor Pop-Up with Dr. Natalya Cherry from Brite Divinity School
April 13: Were You There? - A New Way of Experiencing Holy Week and Seeing Yourself in the Story
Lenten Study with Pastor Kay
Tuesdays | March 11 | 2-3 pm | Room 154
This Lent, ponder the themes of justice, poverty, freedom, and love. Each Gospel offers a different lens through which we understand Jesus' Passion. One portrait reveals Jesus to be in control, while another emphasizes His suffering. In one story, Jesus offers hope to the thief on the cross, and in another, Jesus only receives derision. These different perspectives aren't a reason to dismiss the Gospels; rather, they reveal an abundant, diverse, and complementary picture of God's work in the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
Lenten Study with Loni Fancher
Wednesdays | March 12 | 1-2 OR 6-7 pm | Room 100
As we walk through the weeks of Lent, we will explore the power of sharing our faith stories, reflecting on how God has worked in our lives and how those stories can encourage, inspire, and connect us with others. How to Tell a Story: The Essential Guide to Memorable Storytelling from the Moth is a practical guide on how to craft, share, and engage others with meaningful and authentic stories. This Lenten book study will focus on how to tell your own personal faith story - learning how to speak about your experiences of God's presence in your life with authenticity and impact.